URBAN WATER CYCLE
Do you know where your tap water comes from and where it goes?
The urban water cycle is the path that water follows from the moment it is captured from nature until the moment it is returned to nature, after being used for multiple purposes.
In nature, liquid water is available in rivers, lakes, seas, and groundwater. Human beings have created, throughout history, canalization systems, treatment infrastructures and forms of distribution and storage of water. All these systems are those that make up the urban water cycle and alter its natural cycle.
Phases of the urban water cycle:
From here, the urban water cycle begins again.
The urban water cycle is the path that water follows from the moment it is captured from nature until the moment it is returned to nature, after being used for multiple purposes.
In nature, liquid water is available in rivers, lakes, seas, and groundwater. Human beings have created, throughout history, canalization systems, treatment infrastructures and forms of distribution and storage of water. All these systems are those that make up the urban water cycle and alter its natural cycle.
Phases of the urban water cycle:
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Catchment: Consists of capturing water from natural sources. To supply large urban spaces, water is often captured from artificial reservoirs.
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Purification: The water is channeled in treatment plants and the water is cleaned and treated to make it drinkable. Seawater needs a more complex and expensive process to be drinkable, salinization.
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Storage: Water is stored in tanks so that drinking water is always available.
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Distribution: Water is channeled to each home. It is transported through large pipes, these lead the water to secondary pipes that reach the taps of the houses.
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Consumption: Water is consumed in homes, it gets dirty again and goes down the sewer.
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Sewerage: The consumed water is transported to a sanitation station through the sewerage system.
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Purification: The water is cleaned of contaminants. It can be returned to nature but it is not drinkable.
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Reuse: The water that has been purified is not drinkable but can be used for industrial uses, irrigation or others.
- Return: The water is channeled through pipes to rivers and seas to return it to nature.
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